Redirecting.work

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This insight, combined with leadership changes, the current global economic uncertainties and impact of AI on job security, forced her to question the next move in her career path.  

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So, despite having a job, she continues to reimagine her career knowing whatever she does, at some point, she will work her way out of it.

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Pivot Transition Process
Thea has embraced what she calls “structured cocooning” — a process of reflection and recalibration inspired by Phyl Terry’s book Never Search Alone, Tess Vigeland’s book, We Decided to Go in a Different Direction, and Wisdom @ Work:The Making of a Modern Elder, by Chip Conley. These resources offered her more than job search tips; they gave her frameworks for making sense of her values, blind spots, experiences, and ambitions. She explored what she loves (“building things, creating”) and what she hates (“redundancy, being inconsequential”). 

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The emotional support around her has been just as foundational. Former colleagues stepped in with check-ins, advice, and meaningful conversations about her strengths and opportunities. “I have the loving arms of a lot of people,” she says. Some offered tactical advice, others simply listened. That ecosystem of support has become the foundation of her resilience. Readers: You may need to create your own ecosystem of support.

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Thea’s Current Direction
Technically, Thea’s current role is a return. She is working for the same company, collaborating with a leader who values her, with whom she has a history of mutual respect, and in a familiar organization. Thea is now taking this unplanned step as a mini-pivot; a pragmatic step that allows income and stability with welcomed support and appreciation while she works more deeply to create what's next. "This whole experience forced me to appreciate how roles and work changes are accelerating and how to prepare for the next inevitable pivot." 

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That future may include a shift to advising, entrepreneurship, or becoming known for her expertise in organization design and the customer journey; areas she’s already begun writing about and exploring on LinkedIn. She acknowledges that having the structured framework of Never Search Alone for what to consider and what to walk away from is most helpful for her to land in the right spot for her next, but possibly not her last pivot. “Step one: I need to be more known,” she says, hinting at a more visible, purposeful version of herself that’s still in the making. I, for one, love seeing this.

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Advice for Others Considering a Pivot

• Don’t go it alone. Build a support network. Lean into structured communities like those at Phyl.com. “Pivots are easier with step-by-step support.”
   

• Know your strengths — and your blind spots. Write down your accomplishments. Ask people what they see in you.
   

• Be open, but not aimless. Explore widely, but bring order to the chaos. What do you love? What do you hate? Be exclusive rather than inclusive. Let those answers guide you.
   

• Future-proof yourself. Understand how your strengths (like process design) can also become traps. Always be learning to stay ahead of the curve.
   

• Be resilient. Cocooning is hard work. Give yourself the wellness and rest you need to do it right. Seriously – this gets even harder as you get older.
   

• Recognize that a “job” may be a step in your pivot. The process is rarely linear.

 

Thea is a pivot in progress — no tidy resolution, no final destination, but for now, in a supportive team with great potential. While she has jumped into her new position with both feet, she is staying curious, resilient, and aware. Rather than seeing her return to work as the end of a journey, she recognizes it as a next step in a longer journey. The work ahead is inward and outward: refining her story, exploring what truly fits, and figuring out how to “be more known” in the work she wants to offer next. Her journey reminds us that a pivot doesn’t always start with clarity. Sometimes it starts with loss — and the courage to cocoon, listen, and begin again.